SNAP
Statements

SNAP
Statement RegardingMcChesney
Remarks
on the Deposition of Therapists

Statement
from Ben "Buddy" Cotton, New Jersey Director, SNAP

January 25, 2003

"Today we learned
that the Director of the Office of Child and Youth Protection for
the Catholic Bishops announced her support for the deposition of
therapists in clergy abuse civil cases. It seems that Ms. McChesney
has put the cart before the horse in her first public comments about
the compliance of a Catholic diocese with the church's new child
sexual abuse policy. Had she met with clergy abuse survivors on
her first trip to Boston, Ms. McChesney might have begun to establish
an independent voice for what the church has claimed is her independent
role to help solve the sexual abuse crisis in the church.

Ms. McChesney needs
to understand better the games that bishops play. Bishops claim
in their policies and their public pronouncements that they will
deal with clergy sexual abuse and rape victims with more compassion.
Then they release their attack dog lawyers out the back door of
the chanceries across America, using hardball legal tactics to intimidate
and discourage victims.

For all pending cases
of abuse in each diocese, Ms. McChesney should not apply a legal
standard for what is the proper way to treat victims. She should
apply the same standard that most Catholics would apply: a high
moral standard. Based on Ms. McChesney's comments this week, we
hope that she will refrain from comments that may hurt already struggling
sexual abuse victims, reflect open-mindedness about the dioceses
that she is investigating, and consult others about the right moral
course
for all cases.

If on her future trips
to dioceses Ms. McChesney meets with at least as many clergy sexual
abuse victims as she does church leaders, perhaps she will gain
greater moral clarity about this crisis and begin to make a difference
for victims."